WAPO EDITORIAL BOARD -- “CONGRESS [& COURTS] MUST BLOCK TRUMP’S BAN ON TRANSGENDER PEOPLE IN THE MILITARY”: A powerhouse piece by The Washington Post Editorial Board lambastes Donald Trump’s ban on military service by transgender individuals as “without logic or need,” but with the “potential to do great harm.” It also destroys Trump’s specious claim that having qualified transgender service members harms military readiness. The Post highlights findings from a RAND National Defense Research Institute study that show there would be minimal health care costs and negligible readiness implications associated with allowing transgender people to serve. The board writes, “[A] better bet in ending this discriminatory policy may lie in the courts or with Congress… The Republican lawmakers who spoke out against the policy change after Mr. Trump’s July tweets, including Sens. John McCain (Ariz.) and Orrin G. Hatch (Utah), need to give meaning to their words and support that effort.” Read the full piece at The Washington Post.

Zeid Ra’ad al-Hussein, the United Nations high commissioner for human rights, condemned the president’s attacks on Muslims, minorities and transgender people, calling them “grossly irresponsible.” He added, “It emboldens those who think similarly to sharpen their assaults on these communities.” More from The New York Times.

HRC STANDS WITH DREAMERS AND AGAINST HARMFUL PLANS TO RESCIND DACA: HRC joined governors, attorneys general and hundreds of elected officials and other civil rights organizations across the country in a letter supporting the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program and Dreamers. The letter comes amidst reports that Donald Trump is considering ending DACA after ten attorneys general from across the country called for it to be rescinded. That would leave immigrant youth who were brought to the U.S. as children -- including an estimated 75,000 LGBTQ Dreamers -- without work permits, driver’s licenses, and vulnerable to deportations. Read the full letter here.

Morning Must Read -- Divider in Chief: “President Trump has outdone himself in dividing America -- over banning Muslims, pardoning a racial profiler and spotting “very fine people” among the neo-Nazis and Ku Klux Klansmen in Charlottesville,” The Washington Post Editorial Board writes this morning. “Now he is reported to be on the brink of dividing families by rescinding deportation protections enjoyed by nearly 800,000 young undocumented immigrants brought to this country as children and raised here to believe in the American Dream.” Read the full piece from WaPo.

ANTI-IMMIGRANT TEXAS SB4 ENJOINED: Yesterday, a federal judge in Texas blocked the discriminatory state law that bans sanctuary cities. HRC celebrates this decision, and continues to stand against discrimination in all forms. More from The New York Times.

THANKFUL THURSDAY -- CHRISTIAN LEADERS ACROSS THE WORLD DENOUNCE VICIOUS ANTI-LGBTQ “NASHVILLE STATEMENT”: Hundreds of Christian leaders, pastors, theologians and advocates have denounced the ugly “Nashville Statement” issued by conservative Evangelicals with a powerful statement affirming the inclusion of LGBTQ and intersex people within faith communities and broader society. The 10-point treatise, titled Christians United, holds “that every human being is created in the image and likeness of God and that the great diversity expressed in humanity through our wide spectrum of unique sexualities and gender identities is a perfect reflection of the magnitude of God's creative work.” In the first 24 hours of its release, the Christians United statement was signed by over 1,000 Christians from around the world, including top theologians and leaders of some of the world’s most influential Christian denominations. Read more from HRC.

WEST VIRGINIA COUPLE TO RECEIVE APOLOGY FROM ANTI-LGBTQ COUNTY CLERK: Samantha Brookover and Amanda Abramovich were berated by a homophobic county clerk when they sought a marriage license last year. After seeking damages for being told their relationship was “wrong” and that “God will judge” them, before ultimately giving the couple a license -- the couple settled in the case and will receive $10,000 and a public apology from the county clerk’s office. More from The Associated Press.

HOW TO HELP TEXAS TODAY: HRC's thoughts and prayers are with those impacted by Hurricane Harvey. We will stand with Texas and the entire region in the days, weeks and months ahead. At HRC, we know that when one community hurts, all of America hurts. That’s why we’re urgently supporting organizations with their recovery efforts. HRC leaders on the ground in Texas have suggested groups who are serving Texans here.

LGBTQ YOUTH HOMELESSNESS GROWS IN SACRAMENTO: An estimated 40 percent of homeless youth identify as LGBTQ. These young people cite running away from home or being rejected by their families because of their LGBTQ status as the two most common reasons for being homeless, or at risk of becoming homeless. More from CBS Sacramento.

OLYMPIC HURDLER COLIN JACKSON COMES OUT AS GAY: The Olympic silver medalist came out in an interview for a documentary called Rainbow Heroes, sharing that he was first outed in a tabloid in 2006. More from The Guardian.

ISRAELI GOVERNMENT REVERSES POSITION ON SAME-SEX ADOPTION: The Labor, Social Affairs and Social Services Ministry reportedly told the State Attorney’s Office that it no longer objects to same-sex adoption. Last month, the government vowed to continue its ban on same-sex adoption, speciously claiming that it puts a “burden” on children. More from the Washington Blade and Haaretz.

READING RAINBOW

Advocate reviews a book of poetry dedicated to the 49 lives taken in the Pulse nightclub shooting; CNN reports on India’s first-ever beauty pageant dedicated to transgender and genderfluid people; Advocate shares a photo series highlighting the lives of transgender people

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